Nurse Manager Starter Kit and Fundamental Skills Checklist “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”

–John Quincy Adams

Nurse Manager Starter Kit and Fundamental Skills Checklist 2

Nurse Manager Starter Kit and Fundamental Skills Checklist This checklist is intended to help you get organized by developing a personal support

system as you begin your new career as a nurse manager. There is no set timeline; but

we do ask you to set your own deadlines. Even so, feel free to adjust the timeline to

your pace and modify the specifics of this checklist based on your needs.

The tasks and activities covered here don’t have set completion dates or require

signatures to prove you did them. We want you to set your own agenda — identify who

you need meet, find the time to set up appointments, and keep them. Do your personal

research and learn as much as you can about your organization and the role you play.

Be proactive, take care of yourself and enjoy your first year as a nurse manager. Your

first year will offer exciting challenges and opportunities for growth that will create the

foundation for your career as a nursing leader.

Instructions:

1. Get a binder with five divider tabs. Ideally the binder will allow you to put the first page of this document on the front of the binder and this page inside the front cover.

2. Place the rest of the pages in this document immediately after the appropriate tab:

a) MEET AND GREET – tab 1

b) DOCUMENTS AND POLICIES – tab 2

c) PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT – tab 3

d) TECHNOLOGY – tab 4

e) JOB AIDS – tab 5

3. Retain this document in your electronic files in case you want to print out more materials.

4. Print out and add the job aids from all the modules as you come across them so you have easy access to them.

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MEET AND GREET

This table is where you can begin to make contact with the people who

will help you succeed in your new career, including key stakeholders,

key players in the organization, peers and colleagues. These

relationships can be as formal or informal as you’d like, based on your

personality and how a particular individual suits your situation. The goal is to discover

what each person or group does, how they do it and see exactly how you can best work

together.

Track your progress here as you meet people, introduce yourself, make appointments

and build influential relationships. Use the checklist below to guide your steps as you

settle into your new environment.

□ Make an appointment with your supervisor to discuss your role and understand

the expectations you both have. Keep in mind that you will likely get more time

with them at the beginning, while you’re getting settled in, so take advantage of

the opportunity.

□ Meet with safety leaders (risk management, maintenance, etc.,) in your facility.

□ Meet with key people in HR.

□ Meet with key people in the finance department.

□ Meet with your organization’s Equity and Diversity Council or the individuals

responsible for diversity and inclusion.

□ Meet with physicians you’ll be working with and physician stakeholders.

□ Meet with your peers and colleagues. Talk with them to uncover common

interests related to the organization and to how they complement your role. Learn

what you can do for one another.

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DOCUMENTS AND POLICIES

As part of the Fundamental Skills for Nurse Managers curriculum, we

have included a variety of tools, documents and recommendations for

further study. Use this checklist to acquire the latest copies of relevant

documents and policies used in your organization. You can get some of these from your

supervisor, but you should be able to find them all in Human Resources.

□ Your job description

□ Job descriptions for each staff role that reports to you

□ The organizational chart for your facility

□ Your organization’s employee handbook

□ Your organization’s nurse manager orientation materials

□ The hiring and progressive discipline policies used in your facility

□ Equity and diversity policies or guidelines

□ A copy of the zero tolerance policy if your organization has one

□ Documents or action plans your organization uses for developmental goals

□ ________________________________________________________________

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□ ________________________________________________________________

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□ ________________________________________________________________

The documents and policies suggested here do not represent an exhaustive list but serve as a starting point. We’ve included space for you to add other documents to this list as needed. We don’t expect you to gather all of these at the same time, but make sure you familiarize yourself with these documents and policies.

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In addition to the documents and policies on the previous page,

there are several books that can serve as a helpful reference throughout your career.

Start with these two as you begin to build your own nurse manager library:

Patterson-Grenny-McMillan-Switzler. Crucial Conversations Tools for Talking When Stakes are High. 2nd Edition. 2011.

AACN Standards for a Healthy Work Environment, 2nd Edition

(https://www.aacn.org/nursing-excellence/healthy-work-environments?tab=patient%20care)

We recommend you develop a Nurse Manager Rounding Tool to use with the patients

on your floor. Here’s an example of a tool you can use:

(https://aacn.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Courses/fsnm/resources/Nurse-Manager-Rounding-

Tool.pdf)

Finally, it will be to your benefit to find time to take the Healthy Work Environment

(HWE) Assessment Survey. It is a recognized tool to benchmark your progress in this

area and gives you the opportunity to re-test periodically.

HWE Assessment Survey

(http://mini.aacn.org/dm/hwe/tabbedadminhome.aspx)

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PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

Your personal and professional development is important for your

ongoing career, especially as you grow in your role a nurse manager.

Many people think of growth and development in terms of learning or

improving job-specific skills…but that’s only part of it. It’s also about

interacting with people and finding that balance between your individual personality and

the job you do. In other words, it’s seeing your responsibilities as an extension of

yourself — the place where your personal and professional goals meet.

Like so many things in life, personal development is a journey. Use this checklist to

make sure your first steps are in the right direction.

□ Find a mentor (check out the references on the next page)

□ Assess yourself. This will give you a good idea of where you are now, so you can get to where you want to be. It will also help discussions and sessions with your supervisor and mentor be more productive and efficient. Do the following:

□ Make a list of your strengths and areas for growth. This is your baseline.

□ Fill out the Needs and Interests Inventory included with this training.

(https://aacn.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Courses/fsnm/resources/needs-and-interest-inventory.pdf)

□ Fill out a goal plan with your supervisor. Here is a sample you can use if your organization doesn’t have official goal-setting forms.

(https://aacn.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Courses/fsnm/resources/First-Year-Goal-Plan.pdf)

□ Talk to HR and schedule cultural competence training.

□ Create business or index cards with your contact information and instructions for getting in touch with you on when you’re not at work. Hand them out to your staff.

□ Identify people you can contact for help or information. Use the form on the next page (make additional copies as needed). Put frequent contacts into your phone or tablet.

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Here are some additional references on mentors and mentoring:

1. Finding a Nurse Leader Mentor: Brief Overview

(https://www.emergingrnleader.com/finding-a-nurse-leader-mentor)

2. Mentoring Matters Three Essential Elements of Success: Practical Overview

(Https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryabbajay/2019/01/20/mentoring-matters-three-essential-

element-of-success/#694a041b45a9

3. Mentoring Handbook

(Https://www2.mmu.ac.uk/media/mmuacuk/content/documents/human-resources/a-

z/guidance-procedures-and-handbooks/mentoring_guidlines.pdf)

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TECHNOLOGY

Every organization uses technology a little differently. By the same

token, you might have certain software programs or apps you prefer to

use to organize information. It’s a good idea to talk to your supervisor,

mentor, HR and your organization’s IT department to see what they recommend. Also,

find out if your personal tech can interface with the company’s.

Fill out the form below and keep it as a reference.

Available Technology

Type Provided? Y/N/N.A.

Make / Model Notes

Mobile Phone

Pager

Tablet Computer

Desktop Computer

Other

Software & Applications

Name and Type of Tool (e.g. productivity, communication, etc.)

Maintained by IT? Y/N

Compatible w/Personal Software? Y/N

* Training Available? Y/N

* If product training is not available through your organization, check:

1. Free training online via YouTube or the manufacturer’s website

2. Web-based training or in-person seminars conducted by an educational company

3. Continuing education at a local college or university

4. Community educational resources

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JOB AIDS

In addition to the job aids from Module 1 that are covered in the first

four tabs of this binder, each of the other modules has at least one job

aid to help you turn what you learn into action. It might be handy for

you to print out and keep those job aids here in tab 5 for easy

reference. The list of job aids is below. If you don’t print them initially, you can go back

to the lessons and download them.

Module 1 Job Aids (Tabs 1-4)

1. Module 1: Nurse Manager Starter Kit and Fundamental Skills Checklist (all tabs)

2. Module 1: Nurse Manager Rounding Tool (Documents and Policies tab)

3. Module 1: First Year Goal Plan (Personal Development tab)

4. Module 1: Needs & Interest Inventory (Personal Development tab)

Modules 2-5 Job Aids (Tab 5)

5. Module 2, Lesson 2: Recognizing Leadership Styles

6. Module 2, Lesson 6: Orientation Plan Sample

7. Module 2, Lesson 6: Performance Feedback Tool

8. Module 2, Lesson 10: Know Your Union Contacts

9. Module 3, Lesson 1: Preparing for Your Financial Responsibilities

10. Module 3, Lesson 4: Operating Budget-Example

11. Module 3, Lesson 5: Position Control Wordsheet-Example

12. Module 3, Lesson 6: Staffing Matrix-Example

13. Module 4, Lesson 4: Making an Action Plan

14. Module 5, Lesson 7: Technology Checklist